WRITTEN BY MATTHEW BISHOP
‘Ask and you shall receive.’
I've heard this saying before and never believed in it. It seems idealistic to call the world in for your personal favor. Like the idea of calling to the universe with a list of demands is comical!
Do not think of this logic as a guarantee. Think of it more in the space of manifestation. If you were to ask for something you would need to know what you want and how you want it. Expression of a desire exhibits a fully formed idea. Even if not explicitly asking this allows a greater perception of your goal and a higher probability of chasing it.
My desire formed in this moment.
An unexpected storm prompted me to run outside with a tripod and camera in hand. I was unprepared, standing in the rain. I used my shirt as a cover. While mosquitoes had their way with me, my mind was focused on the lightshow. It excites me like no other, as if the bolts run through my mind and body.
I was happy with the pictures, but I knew I could have done better. In critical review the photos are dark. I needed a subject that was more visually present. It came to me then: I needed a shot over a city skyline.
I decided I would shoot the Detroit skyline from Windsor. I knew a park where I had a wonderful view of the Detroit skyline. I knew this spot because I had shot there many times before.
Well I waited.
Quite a while I did. Checking forecasts and going to work. Checking forecasts at work. Work, work, and more mundanity. About a month of this and my demand never waivered. I wanted it and I was going to get it.
Then something came about. A level 3 alert passing over Chicago that evening. The predicted forecast following was set to fly into South Eastern Michigan. Passing through Detroit around 2am. I got this from a 24 hr radar app on my phone. While the app is pretty accurate, it was just a prediction. Weather is very uncertain: Storm fronts can pass through earlier or later than expected, sometimes it goes in a different path averting the area completely.
I don't have control over the weather, but I have control over what I do. I had a plan and followed it. Driving over to Windsor after work I sat uncomfortable in my car until I managed a few hours of rest. Around 4 am I awoke to aggressive rain. Then a calm clearing preceded. I set the tripod, camera, and a little hot shoe umbrella. I was able to meter the camera on the light present from the Skyline. I put my camera settings on an interval, which will fire the camera continuously on a loop.
I got what I wanted. Lightning over a well-lit city skyline. I stood out there for about 45 min with no rain capturing the show behind the skyline. I was ecstatic in this moment. The culmination of a desire, one that had been unfulfilled for years, is especially gratifying.
I had been in this position many years before. Standing in the rain for hours with no cover. Shooting thousands of pictures that were blank dark skies or blurry. I had to take enough bad pictures to know what was good. I had to define this in detail to come up with a plan to get it.
Overtime with practice I developed the skills and bought equipment to shoot lightning. After all those considerations, the only variable was the external circumstances. In that moment that sky opened up perfect for me. However if it wasn't that day I would have waited till the next opportunity.
The point is that defining what you want is more important than having the competence to achieve it. Unless you're born with a plan, you have to figure out what you want to do. I mean specifically what you want. It has to be in great detail and it also has to be possible in the constraints of your environment. This can be a long process that requires patience and unfulfillment.
How badly do you want something? The true test of a desire is one that can withstand all these constraints. If you really want something you will make it happen.
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